


A Whole Lotta Throuple For Nothing (Well, Not Nothing)

by jwnchstr



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Awkward Tension, Bisexual Dean Winchester, Comedy, Crack, Dogs, M/M, Misunderstandings, ish
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-29
Updated: 2018-12-29
Packaged: 2019-09-29 23:37:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,866
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17212985
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jwnchstr/pseuds/jwnchstr
Summary: Dean, who recently came out as bisexual and is (with much difficulty) trying to figure out how to do the whole 'dating men' thing, meets Sam's friend Cas at the dog park. Then, there's a dramatically terrible incident with Sam's dog and Dean gets himself into an awkward, confusing mess.





	A Whole Lotta Throuple For Nothing (Well, Not Nothing)

**Author's Note:**

> Before anything, I just want to say thank you to [augustiscoming](https://archiveofourown.org/users/augustiscoming) for helping me through this! I couldn't have written the funny scenes without you. <3  
>   
> Now, I hope whoever is reading this will enjoy it as much as I enjoyed writing it!

– – –

It was a beautiful, sunny fall afternoon. Dean and Sam Winchester were walking together, side by side, watching Sam’s Australian shepherd dog thoroughly sniff the ground in front of them. All around them there were dogs and people – some dogs on leashes, some running free. They were at the dog park Sam visited most afternoons with Riot. Dean usually didn’t join them, but today they had serious business to get down to.

“So,” said Dean, distracted for a moment by a man passing them. The man didn’t pay attention to him though; most men didn’t. “You really gonna go through with this, man?”

“Yes, Dean, I’ve thought it through and I’m just gonna…” He raised his hands in the air and sighed, “…do it.”

“You likin’ the idea of the old ball and chain, huh?”

Sam rolled his eyes at Dean. “Don’t be ridiculous.”

“It’s a big step,” said Dean and nodded solemnly. 

“I know.”

They walked on in silence. The sun was hanging low in the sky; they walked through thick layers of leaves which had fallen from the tall oak trees scattered around the park. People were starting to head on home, leading their dogs through the gates located on different ends of the park in the fence around. Riot was running around ahead of them, sniffing the ground and the few dogs left which he met in his tracks. 

“So, when is the big night?” asked Dean and Sam took a moment to reply.

“I’m thinking Friday,” answered Sam. “I got us a reservation for that new Italian place in town. She’s so excited, it’s been a while since we went out together, especially after, you know–”

“Yeah, makes sense,” said Dean, interrupting on purpose to avoid the subject Sam had been referring to. Too messy for a walk in the park. “Well,” he continued and roughly slapped Sam on his back, “good luck, man. I mean it.”

“Thanks,” said Sam with a hesitant smile. “By the way,” he added after a beat of silence, “I was going to ask if you could watch Riot on Friday. Ya know, when we’re at the dinner.”

Dean pursed his lips as he thought about his answer for a moment, before reluctantly answering, “Yes, sure.”

Sam’s face lit up instantly. “Thank you, Dean! We’d probably be out late and I don’t like leaving him at home all alone–”

“Yeah, yeah, don’t sweat it, man,” said Dean. Or do, he thought, because I’m only doing this to see that goofy grin on your face. And for Jess.

The air was getting colder as time went on and the afternoon turned into early evening. Only a few more people were left at the dog park by now; a man at the far end and a family with a golden retriever a few yards away from where Sam and Dean had now sat down on a table bench. 

Dean shoved his stiff hands in his pockets to warm them up. It was peculiarly cold for the month. He couldn’t believe he had said yes to dog sitting the very mutt he was currently watching giving that family’s dog a thorough sniff-over. Then, he looked over at Sam and remembered exactly why.

“Hey, look, there’s Cas,” said Sam suddenly, and Dean tried locating the person Sam was referring to by following his line of sight and concluded that he was talking about the man Dean had noticed at the far end of the park earlier.

“Who’s Cas?” asked Dean. 

“He’s my– Hey, Cas! Over here!” Sam waved in the man’s direction, and he saw them. He waved back and started walking towards the brothers. 

It took him a while to cross the space between them. Dean knew enough about dogs to take a wild guess at what kind it was; maybe a boxer or some kind of boxer mix. It was wearing a yellow collar. Cas, on the other hand, was wearing a trench coat and a suit underneath, a blue tie stubbornly flapping about against the white dress shirt, ending up backwards sometimes only to turn back around to the correct side sometimes. Once he ended up close enough, Dean noticed just how blue his eyes were (they perfectly matched the tie), and had he been just a little bit sappier, he would have compared them to the sky in his mind. But _of course_ , he was not that corny. 

The man with the eyes blue as the sky on a warm summer day – okay, perhaps he _was_ a little bit sappy – greeted them. “Hello, Sam,” he said and flashed a bright smile that made the skin by his eyes crinkle in the most endearing sort of ways. 

“Hey, Cas,” said Sam. “This is Dean.” He nudged Dean in his side to get his attention and Dean tore his eyes off the man’s face and urgently removed a hand from his pockets.

“Hey,” he said and shook Cas’s hand.

“Hello, Dean,” said Cas. His grip was firm but gentle, his hand slightly calloused but soft nevertheless. “Sam’s told me a lot about you.”

“Has he now?” asked Dean and glanced over at Sam who had a guilty look on his face. “He must have forgotten to mention you.”

Cas’s dog suddenly took an interest in Dean, attacking his hand with sniffs and a wet tongue – he quickly moved his hand away, petting the dog awkwardly on its head. 

“Sorry, she gets very excited sometimes,” said Cas and offered Dean an apologetic smile, tugging at the leash. “Honey, sit,” he said to the dog, who instantly did what she was told, expectantly looking up at Cas. He fished up a treat from the pocket of his coat and gave it to her. Then he released Honey from her leash and she took off together with Riot.

“He only told me nice things,” said Cas and nodded in Sam’s direction. “About you, I mean.”

“I would never speak ill of my brother,” lied Sam and nudged Dean in his side again. Dean just rolled his eyes and then smiled at Cas. Cas smiled back so earnestly Dean’s chest felt tight; no matter how pathetic it was, he wasn’t used to people being so nice. “How you been, Cas? I haven’t seen you around in a while.”

“Oh, you know, work gets really hectic sometimes. I’ve been working long hours lately. My sister even had to take Honey out a few times because I couldn’t get away for even a second. Seems to be slowing down a little bit now, though..”

Cas and Sam made small talk for a while. Dean felt left out, listening intently for something he could comment on, but all in vain. He sat with his hands in his pockets and awkwardly tried not to look at the man in front of him too much. It was impossible to know if men would get offended by his looking; and he had been told that he was very obvious, ever since he had finally dared coming out – as if he would’ve had to say it out loud for people to know. At first, he had been offended by that reaction. 

Attempting to busy himself with watching the dogs play across the park by chasing each other around, he tried his very best not to check Cas out too blatantly. Then the street lights came on, illuminating the table bench which they were all three sat on by now, and he could see him so much better – the wrinkles around his eyes, caused purely by past smiles and deepened by the present one, and the way his otherwise straight hair curled in his neck. 

“I think we’d better head home,” said Cas and turned around to locate Honey. “It’s a shame to cut this short though, because she hasn’t gotten the chance to play with any other dogs in a while now.” 

“We don’t have to be anywhere,” said Dean too quickly, and sensed Sam’s questioning gaze by his side. Sam scoffed and shook his head. “What?” asked Dean, trying his best to smooth over his embarrassing enthusiasm.

“Nothing,” answered Sam and pressed his lips together, signalling that it was definitely not ‘nothing’. 

“I do have to go, though,” said Cas and got up from the bench. He put two fingers between his lips and whistled. In no time, Honey was back by his side with Riot not too far behind. “I’ll see you around, Sam?” he said, before adding, “And you too, Dean.” It wasn’t a question. 

They said their goodbyes, and then Sam and Dean watched Cas and his dog exiting the park through the gate by the spot they had been standing when Sam first saw them. Once they were out of sight, Sam started laughing. Dean frowned and shoved his fist in Sam’s side. 

“ _What_?!” Dean knew his brother enough to know damn well that his laughing was in reference to something Dean had done. He feared the worst.

“Nothing,” said Sam, but again; it was certainly not ‘nothing’. “It’s just that maybe I should’ve introduced you two earlier.”

“And why is that?” asked Dean, hoping Sam couldn’t tell by the tone of his voice how worried he was about the answer.

“Do I really need to tell you that?” said Sam and smirked. “You’ve been pretending not to check him out for the past fifteen minutes, dude. Don’t worry, though, I don’t think he noticed your heart eyes.”

Dean rolled his eyes and shook his head in an attempt to let the topic go. Sam didn’t say anything – he just chuckled to himself for a moment before he got the leash attached to Riot’s collar in preparation to leave.

A little while later they stopped by Dean’s car. Dean leaned his forearms against the roof of the Impala as Sam did the same on the other side, Riot sitting patiently by his side. 

“So, Friday?” asked Dean, even though he knew the answer; anything to make Sam forget about Cas. “You nervous?”

“Scared shitless,” confessed Sam with a sigh. “Do you wanna see the ring?”

Without waiting for an answer he rounded the car and came up by Dean’s side, a small velvet box in his big hand. He opened it and revealed a diamond ring inside. Dean whistled.

“Oh, she’ll like that,” said Dean.

“You really think so?”

“Uh, yeah,” said Dean, eyes wide. “I’m glad you know that size _does_ matter, Sammy.”

Sam was staring at him blankly while he spoke, but once Dean finished he choked on his own tongue, coughing so hard Dean was half certain he’d killed his little brother with a stupid dick joke for a moment. He slapped Sam’s back carelessly, laughing at him once he was out of danger.

– – –

Then came Friday. Dean had dog proofed his apartment by taking away all things from the floor, and put his most precious items in drawers just in case. He did not want any “accidents” on his record collection, so that was all packed away in a cardboard box in the closet. Sam would think he was exaggerating and say that Riot was well trained, but Dean would not take any risks – no matter _how_ many dog training classes they had attended together.

It was one thing if the dog ate his poorly kept plants or chewed on his shoes – that he could manage. But if Riot ate something bad and something happened to him, Sam would never forgive Dean, so he would better keep dangerous objects as far away from the dog as possible. 

Dean even made sure all knives were safely located in the kitchen drawers, despite the fact that Riot would never be able to reach them from the counters. 

Sam arrived around six, leaving Riot as well as his leash and collar, a bag of treats and a chew toy – luckily not the kind that beeps. He had already eaten, explained Sam, so all Dean had to do was keep him company for a few hours. That, Dean thought he could manage. Perhaps a little walk around the block would be good, too, Sam had added before leaving to return to the car where Jess was waiting. 

Once they were alone, they stared at each other in the hallway – Riot sitting on the floor in front of the door, and Dean standing opposite him, arms crossed and one eyebrow raised. Riot turned his head to the side as if asking Dean a question that he obviously couldn’t answer. 

“Listen up,” said Dean and raised a finger, speaking as if to a petulant child. Riot didn’t break eye-contact. “No chewing, no barking and _especially_ no peeing on the carpet – understood?”

Riot turned his head to the other side and whined softly. 

“Good.” Dean lowered his finger. “Now, I’m gonna watch some TV and you’ll just act cool and not make a sound.”

He took a few steps towards the living room, turning around to look at the dog. Riot was still sitting obediently on the floor, gazing over at Dean as if he was trying to figure out what the man was up to. Dean turned back around to walk to the living room. After a few careful steps, he turned his head to find Riot sitting at the very same spot on the floor. He chuckled to himself, shook his head and headed for the couch. 

First, he heard the scratching of clawed paws against the hardwood floor. Then, Riot brushed past his leg – and before he knew it, the dog had gotten comfortable on the couch and Dean hadn’t even had time to sit down on. Head resting against his paws, Riot was expectantly gazing towards the TV which Dean hadn’t turned on yet. Dean sighed and sat down next to Riot on the couch. He petted him carelessly on the back, tugging on his ear before muttering, “Sam’s never gonna hear the end of this, you dumb mutt.” 

A dog on Dean’s couch wasn’t what he’d describe as preferable, but since they didn’t exactly speak the same language, Dean accepted it to be a lost cause. They watched Dr. Sexy together for a couple of hours, though Riot fell asleep a few minutes into the first episode. Dean found himself absentmindedly running his fingers through Riot’s soft fur when the dog turned around on his back, obviously asking to get his belly scratched. Dean obliged, but only because this was Sam’s dog – of course, he wouldn’t have done that for just any dog. He caught himself mumbling, “Hey, you’re not half bad,” to the dog once he settled on his side, eyes closed and relaxed by Dean’s soft scratches to his tummy. Okay, he had to admit it – he was kinda starting to like the dog by the second episode or so. Of course, Sam could never know.

It was when they came home from a ten minute walk around the block everything went wrong. Dean didn’t notice anything at first, but once he walked into the kitchen after collecting the dishes from his dinner from the living room, he found Riot licking something off the floor. He rushed up to the dog who was startled by his sudden approach and backed away from the liquid on the linoleum. 

“Oh, no, what the hell are you drinking?” asked Dean as if expecting an answer. Riot licked himself around the mouth, and then Dean saw it – a fallen, half drunk beer bottle from the night before on the floor, what was left of the alcoholic beverage flowing out onto the floor and creating a small puddle. “Oh, no–” 

Dean felt panic rising in his chest. Riot sat down and watched him frantically pick up the bottle and clean up what was left of the beer on the floor – as if that would instantly cure his brother’s most beloved dog from alcohol poisoning. “What do I do? What do I do?!” he yelled to himself. “Aah, _shit_ , Sam’s gonna kill me, you stupid dog – you’re gonna die first and then Sam will kill _me_!” 

Of course, Riot didn’t speak. He had laid down on the floor, resting his head against his paws and looked up at Dean with big, innocent brown eyes. 

“You know what,” said Dean, squatting down in front of Riot. He carefully petted him on the head, as if too sudden movements would cause the dog to explode. “We’re gonna go on a little road trip, you and I, and you’re gonna be just fine – Sam won’t suspect a thing. Not a single thing...”

Soon, Dean broke his ‘No dogs in the car’ rule, rushing to the closest veterinary station he had found after a desperate Google search, trying his best to cut the twenty minute drive short. The building was like a lighthouse in a storm; the OPEN sign on the door what would save him from the waves swallowing him whole. He parked the Impala with a graceless jerk of the handbrake, with such carelessness he’d have to apologize to her in the morning. His heart was beating fast in his chest and his palms were sweaty – only hours away from the near (at least he hoped it would be just near) death experience telling Sam that he killed his dog would be. 

With Riot in his arms, he entered the building, the bell on the door ringing, and arrived in an almost empty waiting room. There was a woman at the reception desk who was startled by his abrupt entrance. She looked up at him, eyes wide as she saw the dog in his arms. 

“There’s been an accident,” said Dean quickly. “Please, he needs a doctor right now!”

“Is there any bleeding?” asked the nurse, standing up from her chair. 

“No! He–”

“Dean!” 

A male voice now, coming from the doorway behind the counter. Dean didn’t recognize him instantly; first, he saw the white lab coat and the stethoscope hanging around the man’s neck and all he could think was that Riot might survive now when the doctor had arrived and in extension – so would he. 

But then, he spotted the blue tie and those eyes too, and though there were slightly more prominent dark circles underneath them now revealing an even more exhausted Cas, Dean just thought they made the blue stand out even more. The stubble on his face was thicker than that day at the park – he looked good like that, though Dean suspected it was in that state purely due to the fact that it was late and maybe because he hadn’t had time to shave for a couple of days. Despite it only taking him a split second to think all these things, there was a beat of silence before he realized he should answer.

“Cas!” He could’ve slapped himself across the face for such an uncreative response.

“Is that Riot?!” asked Cas, a worried crease in his forehead growing deeper by each syllable. “What– Okay, follow me.” 

Dean carried Riot through a long hallway, half running side by side with Cas. 

“I was watching him for the evening,” explained Dean, throat feeling awfully thick all of a sudden, “because Sam is on a date, and– I don’t know how it happened, I just– I left him alone for _one_ minute, that’s all, I promise!”

“I’m sure it wasn’t your fault, Dean,” said Cas, voice so soft and caring that tears finally dared threatening to make an appearance. Dean sniffled and tried forcing them back in – he couldn’t _cry_ in front of one of the most handsome men he’d ever laid eyes on, no matter how close to being a victim of fratricide he was. And what was even worse – how close to having murdered an innocent dog he could be – a dog he even had to admit he _liked_.

“It was, though,” said Dean, voice weak as he put down Riot on the examining table in the middle of the room they had just entered. “If I hadn’t been so messy! If I had just cleaned the kitchen better, he wouldn’t have–”

“Tell me what happened, Dean. I can’t find any wounds or blood…” said Cas as he touched the dog all over with those smooth hands, searching for any abnormalities. 

Dean swallowed. “I don’t know how but– He– Okay, so, he must have knocked over an old beer bottle somehow, and– Well, he–”

“Dean.”

“Yeah?”

“What happened?”

“He might have drank some beer?” His voice sounded embarrassingly weak now. 

“How much?” asked Cas – _his_ voice, in comparison, was as calm as ever. 

Riot was laying down now and yawned while Cas scratched him behind his ear. 

“I don’t know…” answered Dean, just staring at the inconceivable sight in front of him – how could Cas act so calm?! Perhaps he was so far from saving that Cas had just given up, and was instead trying to give him a relaxing final time alive… “It wasn’t that much… not even half a bottle… Please, just tell me, is he gonna die?”

Cas shook his head and chuckled – if it was because of what Dean said, or because of Riot relaxing into his petting so much his tongue fell out of his open mouth, Dean didn’t know yet. In hindsight, Dean figured it was both.

“No,” said Cas simply. “I think he’ll be just fine. Maybe a bit tired in the morning at worst, but he’ll live.”

The lump in Dean’s throat finally dissolved and the weight on his shoulders was lifted. His heart finally started beating more normally after he let out a heavy breath, sitting down on a chair behind him. 

“I can’t believe I almost killed my brother’s dog,” said Dean, face in hands as he recollected himself. 

“Actually–”

“Not a word to him about this!” interrupted Dean. “Please? He doesn’t have to know, does he?”

“I suppose–”

“You don’t understand,” continued Dean and stood. “He loves this dog more than anything in the entire world, you see, our dad never let him have one, so the first thing he did when he moved out was to get this dog.”

“Dean,” said Cas calmly, a smile playing about his lips, “don’t worry. Sam doesn’t have to know.”

Dean could’ve hugged him after that line – he managed to keep his arms to himself, but just quite. Instead, he settled for a smile, which Cas mirrored. 

“Thank you, Cas,” said Dean and dared giving him a pat on the shoulder. 

“It was my pleasure.”

They just looked at each other for a moment, before Dean realized his hand was still resting on Cas’s shoulder. He quickly retracted it and cleared his throat.

“So…” said Dean as he held his arm stiffly against his side. Riot yawned, the sound of his little whine the only thing breaking the silence for a moment. 

Cas managed to come up with something to say; “I guess I’ll–”

“See you around?”

“Yeah,” said Cas, “maybe at the dog park?” His face lit up at that last part. 

“I don’t actually go there very often,” said Dean, and Cas’s smile faded.

“Oh,” he said.

“I mean– I do. I go there all the time.” Well, _now_ he would – now that there was a chance he’d see Cas there.

“Oh?”

“Yeah, lately I’ve–” He was hoping Cas couldn’t tell he was lying out of his ass. “I’ve been there a lot lately. With Sam and Riot.” His chances were slim.

Cas smiled again. “Then I guess I’ll see you there, Dean.”

– – –

Now all Dean had to do was convince Sam to let him come with them to the dog park without raising any suspicion, which was of course easier said than done, seeing how Dean openly disliked dogs. If he suddenly wanted to spend more time around dogs than absolutely necessary, Sam would suspect something – no, he had to really be smart about this.

“I’m telling you, Sam,” he begun, “I’ve actually started liking dogs more after Riot and I spent some quality time together.”

Sam put down two cups of coffee on the table and sat down on the couch next to Dean. He took a careful sip of the hot beverage. 

“Uh huh,” said Sam without looking at Dean. 

“Yeah, so, if you need to go there…” continued Dean, “…I’d love to come with. You usually go in the afternoons, right?”

“I was planning on going later today, yes,” said Sam and if that wasn’t a smirk on his lips, Dean was imagining things. 

“Great,” said Dean. “Then I’m coming with.”

That’s when he could hear the front door open, and soon after Jess stepped into the living room. She had a beaming smile on her face and was still wearing mittens. 

“Hi!” she greeted. 

“Hey, Jess,” said Dean and got up to give her a hug. 

“Have you seen the ring?!” asked Jess, not waiting for an answer to take off her mittens to show off her ring finger and the ring Dean had, in fact, of course already seen. 

“It looks real good,” he commented and turned to Sam and continued, “At least my brother has good taste in _something_. And by that I mean women _and_ rings, of course.” He said that last part to Jess. 

“Thank you, Dean,” she answered. “Well, I have some stuff to do. What will you guys be up to?”

“I’m taking Dean to the _dog park_ later,” said Sam, the tone of his voice as suggestive as ever. Jess made eye contact with him and they shared what seemed like a knowing look with each other. 

Dean rolled his eyes to himself, sitting back down by Sammy’s side, making sure to bump against him as a minute sign of protest. Sam pushed back, pulling out his best bitch face. Jess smiled fondly at them and disappeared up the stairs.

They finished their coffee while Dean tried not to act too impatient. Going with Sam to the dog park truly was the perfect excuse to see Cas again; a natural, organic encounter without anyone suspecting anything weird. How he’d take the whole thing to the next level, he hadn’t dared thinking of yet – asking Cas out today was out of the question. 

No, first he’d have to make sure his gaydar was well tuned so he wouldn’t accidentally hit on a straight guy; Cas seemed peaceful and kind enough to not cause a scene – or worse – but still. It would be embarrassing. He’d prefer to not have his ego crushed like that, especially since him hitting on men was something out of the ordinary. Women he knew perfectly well how to charm; he’d lean in closer and give them a compliment about something he thought men usually didn’t pick up about them, and he’d look at them through his lashes and lick his lips – the whole shebang. It usually worked. With men, on the other hand… Well, needless to say, he was still going through the trial and error phase. 

They arrived at the dog park later that day. The area was almost empty by now; it was too late for the families and way past people’s first walk after coming home from work. Once they entered and Sam let Riot run free within the enclosed space, Dean looked around to see if he could spot Cas. Since there were so few people there, it didn’t take him long to confirm that he was, in fact, not around. 

“What are you looking for?” asked Sam and sat down on a bench next to the little path going through the park. Dean detected that same suggestive tone from before. 

“Nothing,” answered Dean innocently. “Nothing at all.” He sat down next to Sam and tried to hide his disappointment by watching Riot very intently. 

They were quiet for a little while and just watched Riot run around sniffing the ground like a couple of days before. Someone had raked up all the leaves that had been on the ground at the time, the trampled patches of grass exposed to paws and feet again. 

“Well,” said Dean after a while, slapping his hands on his thighs, “I better get going. Getting up early for work in the morning.”

“Dean, it’s six PM,” tried Sam, but Dean was already on his feet. “And I thought you wanted to spend more time with Riot now after you two started getting along so well?”

“He’s doing just fine on his own,” said Dean and waved in Riot’s general direction. Sure – he liked the dog, it was a decent dog, but it was cold outside and his jacket was too thin, and most importantly, there was no Cas in sight. 

“If you say so, man,” said Sam and shook his head, the shadow of a smirk visible to Dean before Sam turned away from him. 

“I do say so,” said Dean. 

He regretted he had opened his mouth instantly, for Sam continued, “Sure, Dean… Hey, I actually wanted to talk to you about something.”

Dean stopped in his tracks and turned around. “What?” was all he could think to say.

Sam took a deep breath, and said, “Well, it’s kind of… a big deal. I don’t know how you’re going to react.”

Now, Dean was intrigued. He walked back and sat down on the bench, turned to Sam. He gave his brother an encouraging look. “There’s not that much that can shock me, you know that, Sam.”

“This might do more than shock you,” said Sam, voice lowered as if he was scared someone would listen despite them being completely alone save for a couple of crows in the tree above them. 

So, what would it be? Did Sam need help burying a body? Was he going to join the circus? Or worse – was he going vegan?

“Okay…?” said Dean.

Sam covered his mouth with his hand, staring into the ground as if the entire world was resting on top of his shoulders. “I can’t tell you,” he said and closed his eyes solemnly as he took a deep breath. “Never mind.”

Dean punched his brother softly in the shoulder. “Dude! Just tell me!”

“Okay, here goes…” Another deep breath, and he continued, “Jess and I have been talking.”

“Good for you!” exclaimed Dean, waving his hands impatiently. “About what?”

“Listen, it’s a bit… controversial.”

“So? What is it?”

“We’ve been talking about getting a third partner.”

Dean huffed a laugh. “You’ve been– _What_?” He stared at Sam, desperately waiting for his brother to start laughing and revealing that this was all just some weird joke. He didn’t start laughing. They stared blankly at each other for a moment, Sam’s eyebrows creasing deeper by the second while Dean’s chin dropped wider at the same rate.

“We’re gonna become a throuple,” he said with a completely straight face as if that was the most ordinary thing in the world. 

“A throuple?” echoed Dean incredulously.

“Yeah, like a third person–”

“I know what a throuple is! Spare me the details!” 

“So… yeah. Thoughts?”

Dean exhaled and stared blankly into thin air, saying a quick prayer in his mind that this was all just some freaky dream and he was actually passed out on his couch from one too many beers and he’d wake up, shake his head, and mutter sleepily to himself, ‘Damn, what a weird dream’. This was pure horror.

“I think it’s great,” lied Dean.

“You sure?” asked Sam. 

“Yeah!” He blew raspberries to sell the lie. “Everything is fine! Awesome, even!”

“Oh, great! I was scared you’d think it was weird or something,” said Sam and exhaled a shaky breath. He sat up straighter and smiled earnestly, slapping Dean on the back. “Thanks, Dean.”

Dean forced a smile. Then it hit him – “Wait, aren’t you and Jess getting married–”

“‘Cuz I’m telling you, Dean, he’s just so great!” Sam dreamily looked off into the distance.

“‘He’?”

“You should know!” said Sam and elbowed Dean in the side, waggling his eyebrows suggestively. “You know him a little bit, actually.”

“Wait–” Oh, this was definitely a nightmare, and if Sam nudged him just one more time he’d wake up like he’d just been pinched, right? As if the fact that Jess and Sam were getting a third partner wasn’t enough, it was a man?! _Sam liked men?!_ When the hell did that happen?! Dean’s head was spinning, and had he not been so intent on selling the lie of being the oh-so supportive brother, he’d put his head between his knees to calm himself down. 

“He’s so handsome,” continued Sam as if Dean’s ‘wait’ had sounded as weak as Dean felt at the moment, “Blue eyes… Tall, too, and he looks real good in a suit. Such _strong_ , yet smooth, hands, too, I’ve never experienced such an intense–”

Okay, that was it! Dean abruptly stood before Sam had the time to say another word and headed for the exit – he wanted to run as far away from this situation he could possibly get, and he was ready to, as he waved a goodbye in the air for Sam, going, “Okay, gotta go – bye Sammy.” But then – Sam was chortling behind him, and soon the high-pitched chuckle turned into a full blown cackle. Dean stopped dead in his tracks and slowly turned around to see his giant of a brother ready to fall off the tiny park bench, slapping his thigh. 

“What the hell is so funny?!” Dean growled, ready to go back there and kick his ass.

“Your _face_!” Sam pointed at him.

Dean just stared dumbfoundedly – he was sure he looked like a human question mark by now, arms hovering in the air and eyebrows raised. 

“Throuple!” yelled Sam and the word must have been like fuel to a fire, for he started laughing even more intensely now.

“ _SAM_!”

“You’re fucking ridiculous, Dean!” said Sam and the hysterical laughter had now subsided into soft chuckles that came in little random bursts.

“I won’t hesitate to kick your ass if you don’t tell me what the hell is going on,” threatened Dean and walked up to his brother, both hands clenched into fists.

“I know you just came here because you were hoping Cas would be around…” said Sam then, wiping a tear off his face.

Dean stopped and closed his eyes slowly, sighing deeply as the realization of Sam’s lie truly hit him.

“…and when he wasn’t here… well–”

“You’re a fucking asshole,” said Dean and raised a warning finger. Sam just scoffed and leaned back on the bench, spreading his long arms out on the back of it, looking really damn proud of himself. 

“Can’t believe you bought that for even a second,” said Sam and huffed another laugh.

Dean rolled his eyes. Sam could forget Dean would ever watch his stupid dog ever again – or do him any favor at all, for that matter.

– – –

It took Dean several days to talk to Sam again – no way he’d get his attention after such a prank. Dean was traumatized for life, having been forced to imagine such horrible things, and it was all Sam’s fault. The least he deserved was the good old silent treatment.

The silence between them was broken one week after the event in the park by Sam sending Dean a text. Dean was at work at the time, stuck under the hood of an old Ford with engine problems, so, naturally it took him a while to answer. 

_I need to talk to you, ASAP. Face to face._

Sent 46 minutes ago – well, hopefully that was within range of ‘ASAP’ in Sammy’s world. Dean answered with a simple, ‘Where?’ and awaited Sam’s reply – if it were so important, he better reply fast. 

Turned out Sam was at the dog park, so Dean gathered his tools and put them back in the box, took his lunch sandwich to go in the car and headed for the park.

The park was almost empty at the time he arrived; most people were probably too busy at work to take their dogs there. Working at Bobby’s garage had its perks – the only consequence of spending too long away from work at lunch was a scolding and maybe a soft slap to the back of his head if he were _really_ late.

 _I’m here, where are you?_ texted Dean as he sat down on a bench, looking around the park to see if he could spot his brother. Sam was nowhere in sight. In fact, he was all alone – looking like a downright idiot hanging out in a dog park without a dog. 

He stared down at his phone, urging it to chime with a reply from Sam. ‘ASAP’, my ass. He hadn’t even read Dean’s message yet. 

Suddenly, he heard a dog bark; that must be them! Dean turned around, trying to locate where the sound had come from. Expecting Sam’s tall frame and Riot by his side, he was confused by what he did spot, but in the following second, he recognized them.

It was Cas and Honey! And Dean was suddenly very aware of the fact that he was in his work outfit – a stained, old jumpsuit that did him no favors. Cas looked as handsome as ever, all suited up and freshly shaved, now. He quickly wiped a hand across his face, hoping it wasn’t black from motor grease. As if he’d even acknowledge Dean’s existence, just because they had met twice and one of those times he had saved Dean from being murdered by Sam… He shouldn’t flatter himself. 

“Dean!” Well, maybe those things _were_ enough to have Cas come up to him in public after all.

“Heya, Cas,” said Dean as Cas approached him, Honey walking obediently by his side. “What are you doing here? I mean–”

Cas looked down at Honey who had sat down by his side once he had stopped in front of the bench Dean was sitting on. Dean wondered if _slightly confused_ was just Cas’ resting expression. “Uh…” begun Cas, squinting back at Dean. “I finally got an hour free?” He petted Honey on her head, and Dean could’ve sworn he seemed to do it partly so he didn’t have to look at Dean any longer.

“So you came to the dog park, because… that’s what people with dogs do, of course,” babbled Dean. “I’m here because… I mean I don’t have a dog so I don’t really have any reason to be here, do I? It’s kinda weird that I’m– I mean– I’m meeting Sam here. But he’s late.”

“Oh,” said Cas and frowned. “I thought– What?”

“What?”

“Actually–”

“Where the hell is Sam, anyway?” muttered Dean and looked down at his phone. Nothing there. “Sorry, I’m gonna call him to make sure he’s okay and just running late.” One, two, three tones – no answer. He gave Cas an apologetic look while he kept waiting. Ten tones – and voice mail. Dean quickly hung up and pocketed his phone again. 

“No answer?” asked Cas with a sympathetic look. 

“That bitch,” growled Dean – he was starting to get a real bad feeling about this. 

“Maybe he got stuck in traffic, or something,” suggested Cas. He looked everywhere but at Dean, for some reason. 

“Yeah.” Dean scoffed. “Maybe.”

“May I join you?” asked Cas and waved a hand towards the bench. Dean nodded and Cas sat down. They sat in awkward silence for a while, looking at Honey roaming around the park with her nose to the ground. 

“I’m sure Sam will show up any second now,” said Dean, mostly to break the silence between them. He had no hope. Something was going on – he wasn’t sure exactly _what_ , yet… but _something_ fishy was going on. He glanced over at Cas and discovered that his profile was so very attractive; it was a bit disconcerting.

“Dean…” Cas’ gravely voice finally broke the silence. “What is it you wanted to say to me?”

Dean frowned, eyes searching Cas’s face for any sign the man had gone entirely insane. Had Dean missed something here? 

“What–?” he leaned his head to the side. “I didn’t– What do you mean?”

“Well, Sam said–”

“Oh, _no_ ,” exclaimed Dean, suddenly seeing the situation clearly, cutting Cas off. Cas, startled, turned to him as he continued, “Oh, fuck, I know what’s going on here.”

Now it was Cas’s turn to lean his head to the side in confusion. 

“What…?” asked Cas slowly. 

Dean couldn’t tell him Sam had set them up (because he was pretty sure that was it) – he just couldn’t! Then Cas would know exactly what Dean thought about him, and that could end badly. What the _hell_ was Sam’s problem? First that bullshit with the throuple, and now this? Oh, what had he done to deserve such agony?

“Well, you see _Sam_ must have gotten confused about our meeting.” Dean was lying through his teeth, and it was such a common occurrence these days, he must be getting good at it. Right? “I told him I needed to tell him something, you know, I was finally gonna come clean – about Riot, you know… And I told him it had to do with you, and he’s under a lot of pressure right now, you know, trying to pass the bar, he is! And I’m pretty sure Jess wants to be a throuple, and he just _proposed_... Anyway he must have thought that I wanted to tell _you_ something, but really I just needed to tell him I let his dog drink beer.” Dean’s eyes were going everywhere but Cas’s face as he babbled on, and when he finally stopped, he needed to gasp for air, but when Cas didn’t say anything, he nervously continued, “So, you know, he must have thought I wanted to talk to _you_ about something, but really, what would I need to tell you? We’ve just met like, what, two times? It would be ridiculous of me if I had something to ask you! What would that even be, you know? I don’t even know you!” He forced a stiff laugh to accompany those last rhetorical questions. 

“Dean, I understand,” said Cas then once Dean’s fake laugh had faded away, much like his dignity after such a speech. “You’re right, what would you possibly want to ask me?” It was Cas’s turn to laugh now, a soft chuckle that never really started to sound genuine. 

“Exactly…” answered Dean half-heartedly. “I, for one, have no idea…”

“Me neither.” Cas looked down at the ground as he poked around in the dirt with a dry stick. 

They were quiet for a while, a bad feeling growing stronger and stronger in Dean’s chest each second that passed. Something about the tone of Cas’s voice as he uttered those last words made Dean just feel so… guilty. He looked down at the stick Cas was using to poke a deep hole into the dirt. 

“Hey, Cas?” he tried carefully. 

“Yeah?”

“Consider the fact that… _if_ I had something to ask you…”

“Hypothetically?”

“Yeah, hypothetically,” said Dean and avoided Cas’s gaze. “What… would you think of that?”

“I guess…” started Cas and looked off into the distance before turning to Dean, “it depends on what you asked.”

“Right,” said Dean. He took a deep breath. “Because… actually…”

“Dean,” interrupted Cas, “Before you say anything… _I_ have to ask… Sam told me to come here today because you wanted to talk to me about something. I figured that it was about last Friday, that you wanted to say thank you or something like that – not that you would have to, but I just figured that’s the only thing you’d have to talk to me about, because, like you said, we’ve only met, what, three times now? So that’s why I came, but if it was all just a misunderstanding, I guess I better just go–”

“Do you want to go out with me?” The words were just blurted out; left his throat before he even had a chance to think them through – he stared wide-eyed at Cas who stared probably equally wide-eyed back. God, this was a disaster. 

After a beat of silence, Cas asked, “Is that what you came here to ask?”

“No!” answered Dean quickly, and then, “I mean, yes! I mean, I didn’t–” He closed his eyes and took a deep, strengthening breath. “I didn’t know you were going to be here. I… lied before. Sam must have set us up. He told me to come here and talk to him. He’s not here… but you are, so… God, he’s such an asshole!”

“I don’t understand,” said Cas with an adorable frown – at least he didn’t seem upset about Dean, a _man_ , asking him out. That was a good sign even though he hadn’t actually given Dean a reply, yet. “Why would your brother set _us_ up?”

“Because…” Yeah, here went nothing. He could not keep the lie up any longer. “Because he noticed that I liked you the first time we met and apparently he thinks it’s really fucking funny to tease me about it in the most embarrassing way. I bet he’s laughing his ass off wherever the hell he is at the moment.” Dean looked around, half expecting to find Sam spying on them from behind a tree with a hand in front of his mouth to suffocate another hysterical laughing fit.

“Oh,” was all Cas said to that. He had dropped the stick and was sitting facing Dean now, studying his face with a skeptical frown. 

“Yeah…” answered Dean and refused to meet Cas’s gaze. He got up from the bench “I didn’t wanna make you uncomfortable or anything, so… You know what, I should just go. It was nice talking to you– I mean… See you later? Or not. I mean– Maybe… Bye!” He turned around and started walking away… And then a hand wrapped around his wrist, keeping him in place. He looked back to find those mesmerising blue eyes only inches away, and he’d never tell a living soul this fact, but the whole thing – the strong hand on his wrist and those _eyes_ – sorta knocked the breath out of him.

“Dean, _yes_.”

“What?” Dean was a bit too focused on Cas’s lips right about then to actually try and catch up with the conversation. God, he really was pathetic – he had practically been turned down in the most brutal of ways, and yet, he couldn’t keep his ridiculous heart eyes to himself. His heart pounded in his chest. 

“Yes,” repeated Cas, and Dean just looked at him in utter confusion. “I’d love to go out with you.”

“You would?” asked Dean incredulously, looking down at Cas’s hand wrapped around his wrist. Cas instantly retracted it and put it safely by his side and stood up a bit straighter. 

Then, Honey came up to them as if out of nowhere. She sat down next to Dean and put her face against his hand, gently pushing him. Dean thought that maybe dogs weren’t so bad after all… 

“Yes, Dean, I’d love to. I thought you’d never ask.”

– – –

**Author's Note:**

> I don't think I've ever had as much fun writing a fanfic as I did with this one! Leave a comment if you enjoyed, or don't, but comments are always very, very appreciated <3 And as always, say hi to me on [tumblr](https://jownchstr.tumblr.com/) if you want! Thank you so much for reading.


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